1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to hydrostatic bearings for rotating members or shafts, and is particularly concerned with reversing jet axial/radial hydrostatic bearings for turbomachinery.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In turbomachinery hydrostatic bearings are employed to maintain a thin film of gas or liquid in a space between a shaft and a bearing member to avoid physical contact between the solid parts during operation and avoiding bearing wear as a result of operation of such a system. Thus, a suitably designed hydrostatic bearing for turbomachinery can be operated at very high speed over a long period of life.
Various devices and mechanisms have been developed for suitably mounting hydrostatic bearings. One such device utilizes suspension of the bearing by a system of radial and axial springs as disclosed for example in U.S. Pat. No. 3,674,355 to Yearout et al.
However, limited available space and flow for both axial and radial fluid film bearings and concurrent deterioration of performance of such bearings due to wear incurred during start-up and shut-down transients are present in existing turbomachinery. These detrimental factors result in more expensive, less efficient and less durable turbomachinery.